17-year-old aims to tackle toxic masculinity 1 beauty product at a time

By Lakhram Bhagirat

At seventeen, many teenagers are now finding themselves and deciding on their career paths but for Talia Ramsay, that mission is already accomplished. She sees her future as an entrepreneur with a difference. 
The difference with Ramsay’s vision is that she is taking an aim at toxic masculinity. She is hoping that by introducing beauty products for men, she can create a space where men can feel more comfortable taking care of their appearance without having their “manliness” questioned.
“My business does not only cater for females but I also encourage males to buy stuff. A lot of people would judge men if they buy a lip balm or a lip scrub or something in the beauty industry and it is not to say they are unsure about their sexuality. I want it to be an option for men to take care of themselves too because it is not something you see a lot of. So, in addition to helping out the ladies, I want to help out the guys too because, in terms of self-care, a lot of people are always focusing on females and females alone,” the young lady said.
Ramsay’s business is in the beauty world. She produces a variety of lip balms, lip scrubs, lip oils and lip glosses at this time. However, she is actively expanding to include other beauty products.
Ever since she was a child, Ramsay wanted to get into business. She had the knack for it and it was something her mother nurtured and today she is living that dream. As a child, Ramsay was always travelling with her mother, who is in the tourism industry so that meant she would have interacted with and met people from different places and backgrounds.
She observed and studied the way of life in the various places she travelled and is now using that knowledge to further her business.
“Not a lot of people could say at a young age they have travelled to basically 90 per cent of their country and been to three different countries…I have had the best experiences because when I was going on field trips with my mom and stuff, we would have met different kinds of people with different parts and they all are responsible for shaping my view of the world and how it works,” she said.
The young lady attended the St Johns College in Georgetown and her teachers there, particularly in the business field, really encouraged her to become an entrepreneur. The realised that she had a gift for “hustling” and they made sure to teach her the ins and outs of becoming a successful business person.
“I’ve got into business via my mom. She is the biggest role model and also my life mentor. She encouraged me to start my own business because she saw the potential in me. At first, I did not know what kind of business I wanted to start…one day the idea popped in my head and I was like I should do a cosmetic line,” Ramsay recounted.
Even as the idea popped into her thoughts, she thought it to be very funny because she is a person that barely uses makeup. Nevertheless, she decided that the beauty industry had some barriers that needed to be broken down and as young creative, she not only wanted to produce makeup but also advocate for active change.
All her life she has seen men not take care of themselves the way they should because their masculinity becomes questionable when they decide to “pamper” themselves. Initially, the beauty industry did not cater to men apart from fundamental items such as shampoos, deodorant, lotions.
However, the needs of the average man are gradually widening and the beauty industry is becoming a bit more accommodating. But this does not change the perception that men are not supposed to be dabbling in makeup or beauty care items.
“I decided to start with lip care because I do get a lot of comments about my lips. So I decided to make the products I use because I had to customise certain things because I have very sensitive lips and I did have a problem with dry lips as well and I decide, let me make a lip scrub and I have been using it for years now and it has improved my lips.”
Ramsay told Guyana Times that when she began conceptualising her products, she kept in mind that it should be accessible, affordable and of high quality. That is the reason she tests every product on herself before she markets them.
Initially, the market was slow because of the saturation of products. However, she was able to break through and today she enjoys the support of not only women but the very men she has been targeting. It warms her heart to know that she is now providing an avenue for men to practise self-care even if it is only wearing a lip balm to ensure their lips are hydrated or using a scrub to exfoliate the dead lip skin cells.
For now, she is located at 32 Sandy Babb Street, Kitty, but also does deliveries across the various counties to ensure her clients get what they order. Every product is also made fresh and vegan friendly.
“My advice for young people is to take a risk when you know that you can take it and don’t be afraid to talk about your stuff. You won’t always have supportive people around you but you have to use the negative stuff as motivation and continue to build yourself.”